Sports betting experts share what to expect ahead of Kentucky’s online sports betting launch

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - For in-person sports betting retailers like Red Mile Gaming and Racing in Lexington, staff members are gearing up for the launch of online sports betting.

“I think foot traffic will go down somewhat, to some degree,” said Gabe Prewitt, Red Mile’s VP of Racing & Sports Betting Operations. “You know, we just added two kiosks here on the property, so our goal is just to continue to march on with a facility we’re hoping to drive traffic to.”

Beginning at 6:00 a.m. on Thursday morning, Kentuckians will have the opportunity to wager any sports bets from the comfort of their own homes.

“You’re probably gonna be asked for some basic information about you, who you are, where you live, might have to have some form of ID or other identification to verify your identity with these operators that will be coming online tomorrow,” said sports betting analyst with Covers.com, Geoff Zochodne.

Zochodne said with the convenience of online wagering comes extra caution.

“You want to make sure you play within your limits, and you bet reasonably,” Zochodne said. “There are tools these operators have to help with control if you want to set limits on the amount that you can deposit or the amount you can bet during a certain time that is available to people.”

Although the state’s legal betting age is 18, the required age for each of the online betting platforms may vary.

“Some of them are still gonna stick to 21 and over like they have in other states, but others will allow that 18-plus player to come in,” Zochodne said.

Zochodne added following the launch of in-person wagering, Kentucky saw more than 4.5 million dollars wagered in the first two weeks, but he said online sports betting is the missing piece to a much larger puzzle.

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